■ Cath Cronin, executive regional director Te Manawa Taki|Midland Region, gives an update on the restoration of Whakatāne Hospital’s Obstetrics and Gynaecology service

Kia ora koutou. A few weeks ago, I had the privilege of meeting with the communities of Whakatāne, Kawerau and Ōpōtiki to discuss the future of obstetric and gynaecology services at Whakatāne Hospital, says Cath Cronin, executive regional director Te Manawa Taki|Midland Region.

These hui were open and constructive and reflected the real progress that we’ve made since our first community hui in January.

What came through clearly at every stop was just how important Whakatāne Hospital is to the wellbeing of whānau and communities across the Eastern Bay of Plenty.

That strong local voice continues to guide our decisions as we work to rebuild a sustainable and resilient service.

As part of our commitment to keeping stakeholders informed, we are saddened to share that one of our valued Senior Medical Officers (SMOs) will soon be returning to his home overseas for personal and family reasons.

We thank him for his contribution and wish him well.

He has made a meaningful contribution to the service during a challenging period and will be greatly missed by both colleagues and patients.

Despite this change, I want to reassure the community that we are firmly on track to resume full secondary obstetric and gynaecology services at Whakatāne Hospital by March/April next year.

We remain committed to the goals we had set out to achieve in January.

We have three permanent SMOs with confirmed contracts and two offers to locum SMOs in progress.

We continue our active recruitment both in New Zealand and overseas for the additional two permanent SMOs.

Our commitment to providing safe, high-quality maternity care for whānau across the Eastern Bay remains unwavering.

We thank the community for their patience, feedback, and continued support as we strengthen these vital hospital services.

Together, we are building a sustainable future for Whakatāne Hospital and the families it serves.